There were breathless reports yesterday that Jean Claude Van Damme collapsed on the set of a movie he was filming and had suffered a heart attack and that filming had been halted and that it might not be completed. Well, pretty much all of that is wrong. The way it really happened is that Jean Claude Van Damme was feeling tightness in his chest and drove himself to the hospital. There may have been a very minor heart attack, but Jean Claude is doing fine and is back in Belgium with his wife.
The movie itself was almost finished and the only thing left to shoot were some closeups which they are working around.
I miss Jean Claude movies. They were always a great way to escape for a couple of hours and basically all had the same formula so if you were flipping through channels and came upon one, even if it was in the middle you pretty much knew what had happened and where it was going.
Formulaic? Oh yeah... but OMG what an ass on that man back in the day.
ReplyDeleteThat was another thing you could guarantee in a Van Damme movie...a bunch of lingering shots on that ass.
Bloodsport and Kickboxer were awesome. He and I share a birthday, so I'll always have a soft spot for him. Get well, Jean-Claude!
ReplyDeleteYes, the ass was legendary.
ReplyDeletewow, his face looks wonky as hell in that picture. Meth? 'Roids? Coke? All?
ReplyDelete"I can crack a walnut with my buttcheeks!"
ReplyDeleteHe was and still is AWESOME! Good night, Irene! Double Impact was a bit hokey, but boy did I like the double trouble!
ReplyDeleteHis movies are formulaic, but always fun to watch.
chihuahuense, he was addicted to cocaine for many years, that combined with plastic surgery probably explains his face. I thought he was the man back in the day! That was also back when I thought Color Me Badd was a really great band...
ReplyDeleteIt was so long ago, but I think I was married the last time I saw a Van Damme movie. I guess it's tough for an action hero to age gracefully (I'm talking to you, Sly).
ReplyDeleteNever was a fan but I thoroughly enjoyed that hilarious guest appearance he did on Friends.
ReplyDeleteIncidentally, I never see a rerun of that episode of Friends starring Brad Pitt (and I've looked for it). I wonder if the Brangelina machine got the tape hidden in some studio back lot under the saddles used on Gunsmoke or something.
God I did love Timecop
ReplyDeleteIt's a little known secret but Van Damme is HIV+. He got it after screwing transexuals during his heyday in Hollywood, thus the reason for his face looking so screwy. Its due to the steroid in the AIDS cocktail.
ReplyDeletei'm w/ chihuahuense...eeep on the wonky face. and wow...MM, i so didn't know that...*shock*
ReplyDeleteYou know what, MontanaMarriott - you might be right on that. I live in the West End of Vancouver, where we have a few assisted living facilities for HIV + men, and it is generally an area known for being LGBT-friendly and that sunken-cheekbone look is generally attributed to the HIV meds - it never occurred to me that Van Damme has those cheeks, but he does.
ReplyDeleteYeah it doesn't happen to every HIV+ person but a good majority have those symptoms due to the meds they are given. Some people's bodies react differently and they show no signs, but JCVD does. @RocketQueen
ReplyDeleteInteresting, MontanaMarriott! Thanks for that!
ReplyDeleteLoved his splits back in the day. Seated and jumping.
I've played the JCVD drinking game - open a beer at the beginning of the movie (particularly Cyborg), drink when he has dialogue and see how much you have left in the bottle at the end of the movie.
ReplyDeleteWho can forget the trailer for Hard Target? "Why do they call you Chance?"
"My Mama took one."
Universal Soldier is a personal favourite. I wonder whatever happened to Ally Walker.
I also own the movie JCVD. I really enjoyed it and there is one truthful moment in the movie when he speaks to the camera and explains how Hollywood fucks over young people when they come to town to make it big.